Communication Difficulties and Autism Autism and Communication Difficulties

Autism is a disorder that affects many different aspects of the child's development. Symptoms may shift and change as the individual grows older, with some appearing later in life and some gradually disappearing (Frith, 1996). The major difficulties affecting individuals with autism are categorized under four headings: (1) impaired relationships; (2) communication difficulties; (3) obsessions and right behaviour; and, (4) idiosyncratic development (Ellis, 1990). Diagnosis is generally performed by referring to Wing's triad of impairments which includes these major difficulties.

Each of these problems can have a major impact on the life of the child and adult affected by it. In this essay, the focus is on communication difficulties. The essay is organized to discuss the major potential problems with communication that might affect an individual with autism first. The latter part of the essay is focused on one pupil from the Centre, his communication difficulties, and a program for supporting him in communicating more effectively in a given situation.

Potential Communication Problems and Some Examples

In some respects, all the problems that affect individuals with autism lead to communication problems. For example, some of the behaviors, such as echopractice or repetitive behavior, are alienating to many people. This limits the potential for communication and the development of relationships. However, there are a nu

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of the time, although he has short bursts of energy. These, too, are not very constructive, since they are not directed. He sometimes engages in minor self-injury behavior, and sometimes he will hit another child or a staff member. For the purposes of this paper, I will call this boy John. A Strategy for Supporting Improved Communication In most instances, behavioural approaches to behaviour change with children with autism seem to be the most effective. The intent in this section is to develop a strategy that begins with the less restrictive, and least intrusive measures in order to alter the communication behavior of the child. Before that programme is developed, however, two environmental factors should be considered. Children and adults with autism are often hypersensitive to both sound and light. One means of assisting them to communicate more effectively is to reduce this overstimulation to a more manageable level. For example, children with autism may be given earplugs or some sort of ear covering in order to reduce the sound input. For lighting, children with autism may even need dark glasses in order to reduce the glare and distracting input. Both modifying the environment to help the child thrive, or giving
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3887
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page)

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